Police Staff Pay Rise 2026: latest news, and when it will be paid
If you searched for the police staff pay rise and found a page about 3.5% for officers, that award is not yours. Police staff pay runs through an entirely different process, on a different timetable.
Status last checked 2 November 2026
The short answer
The 3.5% confirmed for 2026/27 covers police officers only. Police staff pay is negotiated through the Police Staff Council between the employers' side and the joint unions — UNISON, Unite and GMB — and that negotiation is a separate track with its own timetable.
The unions submitted a claim for 9% or £2,700, whichever is greater, plus a £15 per hour minimum, removal of the Point 24 overtime bar and extra annual leave. A claim is an opening position: the settled figure is usually lower. Until something is agreed there is no national payment date. As of 2 November 2026, no employers' offer has been published.
What would each scenario mean on your pay? Free pay rise calculator →Why the officer award doesn't apply to you
Police officers are not employees. They are office holders under the Crown, which is why they cannot strike, cannot be made redundant, and are governed by Police Regulations rather than an employment contract. Their pay is recommended by a review body and decided by the Home Secretary.
Police staff are ordinary employees. You have a contract, full employment rights, union representation and collective bargaining. Your pay is negotiated, not recommended. That single distinction drives almost every difference below — and it is why an announcement about officer pay tells you nothing about your own.
| Police staff | Police officers | |
|---|---|---|
| Who sets your pay | Police Staff Council — employer side and UNISON, Unite, GMB | Police Remuneration Review Body, decided by the Home Secretary |
| Employment status | Employee with a contract of employment | Office holder under the Crown, governed by Police Regulations |
| Pension scheme | Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) in most forces; Met staff are in Civil Service pension arrangements | Police Pension Scheme 2015 |
| Right to strike | Yes — full trade union rights | No — industrial action is prohibited |
| Overtime | Handbook overtime rates only at or below pay point 24 (£35,772); above it, local arrangements | Police Regulations rates, including rest day and short-notice provisions |
| Redundancy | Standard statutory and contractual redundancy rights | No redundancy — officers cannot be made redundant |
The Point 24 overtime bar, explained
The Police Staff Council handbook's overtime rates (time and a half for weekday nights and weekends, double time on public holidays, plain time on weekday days) apply only to staff paid at or below pay point 24, currently £35,772. Above that point, what you get for extra hours depends on local arrangements, so a colleague just below the line can be paid an enhanced rate for the same shift. The handbook lifts the restriction for call-outs.
UNISON says the bar was set in 1996 and argues it no longer reflects the fact that many operational staff now earn above it. Because the bar is a pay point, it moves up with each pay award, but a regrading or step up that takes you past point 24 can change how your overtime is paid. Abolishing it is one of the headline demands of the 2026 claim.
Free calculator · Police staff mode
Check your take-home — and whether you're over the Point 24 bar
Switch the calculator to Police Staff, enter your salary and hours, and it flags whether you sit above the £35,772 overtime threshold.
Police Staff Back Pay Report
No award agreed (checked 2 November 2026)Your back pay on your own pay, for every possible rise
Pick your spine point, hours, region and the payslip the rise might reach. See your own back pay for one scenario free. The full report covers five scenarios: back pay before and after tax, your new monthly and yearly pay and what it does to your pension.
Pension6.5% LGPS main section band for your pay
LGPS England and Wales bands from 1 April 2026, set on your actual pay (source).
Free preview: if staff got 3.5%, the same as officers
Scenario, not an agreed awardYour back pay in the January 2027 payslip, before tax:
£354
4 months (September 2026 to December 2026) on your full-time pay of £30,333 a year. Assumes the rise is backdated to 1 September 2026, as last year's was. Nothing is agreed.
Want your LGPS pension projection, what the Point 24 overtime bar costs you and your redundancy pay too? They are in the Police Salary Report (£7.99) on the staff take-home calculator. It includes this back pay report too.
"When will it actually be paid?"
The Police Staff Council's employer and union sides met on 19 August 2026 and adjourned talks to 10 September. According to the Local Government Association's Police Staff Council page, the 10 September talks were postponed and are to be rescheduled. On 1 October 2026 GMB told members that negotiations "have been taking place and are ongoing". On 9 October it said there was "no substantive update". On 29 October UNISON's West Midlands Police branch said negotiations had resumed in the week commencing 26 October, still with "no substantive update". As of 2 November 2026 we have not found a published employers' offer, a union ballot or a settlement for 2026/27, so nothing is agreed nationally. One force, Thames Valley, has said its staff will get 3.5% (see the FAQ below). If you've heard a number from your own force or union branch, get it in writing and check whether it is final or on account.
Sources: UNISON, police staff pay claim 2026 · GMB, talks updates 1 and 9 October 2026 · UNISON West Midlands Police, 29 October 2026 · Thames Valley Police careers, 1 September 2026 · PCS, Met staff, 28 January 2026 · UNISON West Midlands Police, 1 September 2026 · LGA, Police Staff Council
- Next · Not yetEmployers' offer
- 29 Oct 2026UNISON branch: talks resumed w/c 26 October, 'no substantive update'UNISON West Midlands Police branch, Police Staff Pay Talks (29 Oct 2026)
- 9 Oct 2026GMB: 'no substantive update'; talks hoped for w/c 19 OctoberGMB, Police Staff Pay Talks 2026/27 (9 Oct 2026)
- 1 Oct 2026GMB: negotiations 'are ongoing'GMB, Police Staff Pay (2026/27) Talks Update (1 Oct 2026)
- 10 Sep 2026Planned 10 September talks postponedLGA, Police Staff Council page (via search extract)
- 1 Sep 20261 September settlement date passes without a published offerLGA, EMP circular 1/2026 (9 Apr 2026); PSC trade union side pay claim 2026
Timeline last checked 2 November 2026. Only events we can source are listed.
The Police Staff Council has to agree a figure. Until that happens there is no rise to pay, regardless of what officers have been awarded.
Each force then implements it locally. Two forces agreeing the same national settlement can still pay it in different months.
In recent rounds settlements have been backdated to the agreed effective date (2025/26: 4.2%, effective 1 September 2025, accepted October 2025), so a delay has shifted when you are paid rather than how much. That is not guaranteed for 2026.
Check your own force's intranet or your union branch for local implementation dates — national coverage cannot tell you which payroll run yours lands in, and some forces set staff pay locally rather than following the national agreement at all.
Common questions
Does the 3.5% police pay rise apply to police staff?
No. The 3.5% announced on 15 July 2026 (written statement HCWS264) applies to police officers of all ranks in England and Wales from 1 September 2026. The Police Remuneration Review Body had recommended 3.9% for ranks up to chief superintendent; the Home Secretary decided on 3.5%. Police staff pay is negotiated separately through the Police Staff Council between the employers' side and the joint trade unions — UNISON, Unite and GMB. The two processes have different timetables and different outcomes, which is why a confirmed officer award does not tell you what staff will get.
When will the 2026 police staff pay rise be paid?
There is no single national date until the Police Staff Council settles the claim and individual forces implement it on payroll. In recent rounds settlements have been backdated to the agreed effective date (the 4.2% for 2025/26, for example, took effect from 1 September 2025 and was accepted in October 2025), so a delay has shifted when the money arrives (as arrears in a later payslip) rather than how much is owed. Nothing guarantees the same for 2026. As at 2 November 2026 there is no employers' offer. On 29 October 2026 UNISON's West Midlands Police branch told members there was "no substantive update" on the Police Staff Council negotiations, which resumed in the week commencing 26 October. Some forces sit outside the national arrangements and set staff pay locally (the Metropolitan Police is one), so their timing can differ again.
What did the unions ask for in the 2026 claim?
The joint trade union side submitted a claim in April 2026 for 9% or £2,700 on all pay points, whichever is greater, plus 9% on standby and overnight-away-from-home allowances, a minimum rate of £15 per hour, removal of the "Point 24" overtime bar, and more annual leave (24 to 25 days on appointment, and 29 to 30 days after five years). A claim is an opening position, not a settlement — the agreed figure is usually lower.
What is the Point 24 overtime bar?
The Police Staff Council handbook sets rates for additional hours beyond an average 37-hour week (plain time on weekday days, time and a half on weekday nights and at weekends, double time on public holidays) for staff "paid at or below point 24 of the national salary spine", which is £35,772 from 1 September 2025. Above that point the handbook's overtime rates do not apply and extra hours are a matter for local arrangements, except that the restriction is lifted for call-outs. UNISON says the bar was set in 1996. Because it is tied to a pay point, it rises with each pay award. Abolishing it is one of the demands of the 2026 claim.
Are police staff in the police pension scheme?
No. Police staff in most forces in England and Wales are in the Local Government Pension Scheme, not the Police Pension Scheme. That means different contribution rates, a different normal pension age linked to State Pension age, and none of the police-specific features such as the officer commutation rules or the McCloud remedy as it applies to officers. The main exception is the Metropolitan Police, whose staff recruitment pages describe Civil Service pension arrangements (alpha or partnership) instead. Police pension calculators built for officers will not model a staff pension correctly.
Why are police staff treated differently from officers at all?
Police officers are not employees — they are office holders under the Crown, which is why they have no right to strike and are covered by Police Regulations rather than a contract of employment. Police staff are ordinary employees with employment contracts, full employment rights, union bargaining and the right to take industrial action. Nearly every difference in pay, leave, overtime and pensions traces back to that distinction.
What is the latest news on the police staff pay rise from UNISON and GMB?
As at 2 November 2026, the newest statement we found is from UNISON's West Midlands Police branch on 29 October 2026: "Unfortunately, there is no substantive update on PSC negotiations for this year's pay award." It says negotiations resumed in the week commencing 26 October and that members will be balloted once a final offer is received. It gives no figure. Before that, GMB said on 9 October there was "no substantive update" and that it hoped talks would resume in the week commencing 19 October; on 1 October it said negotiations "have been taking place and are ongoing". The joint union bulletin of 21 August said the 19 August talks were adjourned to 10 September. The LGA's Police Staff page then reported the 10 September session postponed. No employers' offer or ballot has been published.
Have any police forces given staff 3.5% already?
One force has said so publicly. Thames Valley Police's careers site, in a post dated 1 September 2026, says "Police staff will also benefit from a 3.5% pay increase" and lists new starting salaries. It does not say whether this follows a national agreement, is a local decision or is a payment on account, and we found no Police Staff Council circular or union statement agreeing 3.5% for staff. In forces that follow the national agreement, pay stays on the 1 September 2025 spine until a national deal is confirmed or the force itself announces something different.
What is PCSO pay in 2026?
There is no single national PCSO salary. In forces covered by the Police Staff Council, each grade is a point or range of points on the national pay spine, which since 1 September 2025 runs from £24,747 (point 9) to £60,912 (point 45); forces choose the points and add shift and unsocial-hours allowances. No 2026/27 spine has been agreed as at 2 November 2026. One force has published 2026 figures: Thames Valley Police lists PCSO starting salaries of £34,092 to £35,512 from 1 September 2026, depending on shift pattern and location.
What is a police call handler's salary in 2026?
It depends on the force, the grade and the shift allowances, because call handlers are police staff on local grades. The only 2026 figure we could verify on a force's own site is Thames Valley Police: £40,945 for Contact Management (emergency call handlers) from 1 September 2026. Other forces' adverts may still show 2025/26 rates while the national 2026/27 staff award is unsettled, so check the date on any salary you see.
Is there a Met Police staff pay rise for 2026?
Not one we could find published. Metropolitan Police staff are outside the Police Staff Council (the 2025/26 award circular was copied to the Met "for information only"), so their pay is negotiated with the Met rather than nationally. PCS reported on 28 January 2026 that its Met members accepted a 4.2% uplift and a £900 one-off payment, with "a commitment to begin negotiations on consolidated increases for 2026-2027". We found no 2026/27 Met staff settlement as at 2 November 2026.